Sol leaned back in his chair, rubbing his temples. His face was pale, his brows tightly furrowed.
His voice was a low grumble, "We were lucky. Real lucky."
The others looked at him and fell silent.
Kael’s eyes narrowed as he continued to mutter inwardly ’If Adele hadn’t been in disguise, and if Her Highness had recognized her, God knows what would’ve happened next.’
He sighed and shook his head slowly.
’Martina isn’t like Adele. She’s good... fair, even. No arrogance. No cruelty. But we don’t know how she sees us Veydrins.. If she despises them..."
The thought lingered like smoke in the room.
’The Emperor wouldn’t punish the Third Prince in public, sure. But Adele? They’d tear her down behind the scenes. Label her a traitor. A rebel. Maybe even execute her.’
Meanwhile, Kael’s fingers clenched into fists.
’How can she be this naive to appear before everyone? And she even shed her disguise the moment she used her wind power.’
’And if Imperials hold her accountable then, her whole bloodline’s dragged into it. The royal decree on rebels... They wipe out generations. Even distant kin. If I run, I’ll be hunted like a damn beast.’
He spat on the floor, eyes flashing.
’Fucking bitch... One day, I’ll shred you into pieces myself.’
The others stayed silent for a moment, the weight of his words sitting on their shoulders.
Sol leaned forward, jaw clenched.
"What should we do now?" he asked grimly. "We couldn’t even finish the task we came for."
"All this work. All this damn effort—wasted," he muttered, slamming his hand on the table.
Freya’s eyes were sharp as knives.
"That’s not the main issue," she said through gritted teeth. "The real problem is—how the hell did they even know about our appearance?"
Her words hit like a hammer. The weight of suspicion fell on everyone.
Sol’s eyes darkened. "Yeah... who let the rat out?" he growled. "There’s no way they knew unless someone blabbed. And if I find out who..."
He stood up and smashed his fist against the wooden wall with a loud thud, his chest heaving with rage.
Herion finally spoke, his tone calm but cold, "We’ve all been moving carefully. No one should’ve known what night, what time, or even what docks. So either it was someone with access to our logistics... or someone pretending to serve."
He looked around. "This wasn’t a coincidence. It was calculated."
Kael nodded slowly and turned to Adonis.
"Think it’s one of the people who left for the other city? Maybe someone slipped in disguised as a maid or servant. There’s no shortage of masks in this city."
Everyone turned toward Adonis, waiting.
He raised a brow, then shook his head. "Possible. But unlikely. I think it’s closer."
He folded his arms, gaze narrowing.
"One of the guards at the docks. The ones who were placed there under the orders. They might’ve been bought or threatened. That’s our weakest link."
Kael leaned forward and tapped his fingers on the table slowly."Could be more than one," he said darkly. "We don’t know how deep this goes. For all we know, half of them already turned coat. We might’ve been surrounded by spies for days."
"DAMN IT!" Sol shouted again and stomped his foot on the wooden floor.
The sound echoed through the quiet inn, followed by irritated groans from the rooms below.
"Can you stop with your dumbass antics?" Freya snapped, shooting him a deadly glare.
She kicked him sharply in the shin.
"OWW!" Sol winced, hopping slightly and gripping his leg.
"S-sorry... sorry... I just can’t take it. I want to grab those traitors and cut them into tiny little pieces!"
Herion chuckled under his breath.
Kael’s expression didn’t change. He simply looked around the room, eyes steady and quiet.
They had survived.But the storm was far from over.
Kael glanced toward the window, then turned to the others with a frown.
"But... What about Her Highness? Will she be alright?"
Freya nodded firmly."She will. She’s strong, and I don’t think she will be harmed."
Herion added with confidence, "There’s no way anyone can touch her easily. Don’t worry."
Adonis smirked a little."She might be softer than she looks, but she’s not someone you can break. She’ll be fine."
Just then, the window behind them creaked slightly.
A blur of movement flashed across the shadows. A silhouette leapt silently through the air.
Kael and Sol sprang to their feet, hands instinctively going to their weapons—until the figure landed gracefully in the corner.
Their expressions softened immediately.
"Your Highness...!" they both exclaimed in unison, relief flooding their faces.
Martina stood before them, wrapped in her dark cloak, a gentle smile dancing on her lips.
She brushed a lock of hair behind her ear and stepped closer."Are you all alright?"
Adonis stood up and gave a slight bow.
"Yes. All thanks to Kael. He managed to stall the enemy long enough for us to recover and escape."
Everyone turned to look at Kael, who scratched the back of his neck, trying not to meet Martina’s gaze.
Martina tilted her head slightly, eyes narrowing with curiosity as they fell on Kael.
"Is that so?" she asked with a soft tone. "You did well."
Freya folded her arms."There was a woman who hit us... She wasn’t just strong. She was like a damn storm. I’ve never seen her before."
She looked at Martina."Do you know who she is, Your Highness?"
The others leaned forward slightly, waiting for her answer.
Martina’s smile faded. She shook her head slowly."No. I’ve never seen her before either. This is the first time."
A moment of silence passed.
Then Kael spoke again, more serious this time.
"We need to talk about the spy."
As the word spy echoed in the room, Martina’s face froze. Her calm expression didn’t falter outwardly, but her eyes sharpened, and her jaw clenched for a brief second.
She folded her arms across her chest, and her voice dropped lower.
"...That spy," she said, her words cold as steel.
"I will deal with it. Personally."
Everyone exchanged glances, sensing the anger brewing beneath her composed mask.
There was no doubt—whoever had betrayed them... would not be shown mercy.